"It (MLK papers collection) really didn't belong anywhere else," said Andrew Young, a lieutenant of King's during the civil rights movement, who became overcome with emotion when discussing the deal Friday night.

Oh, Glory! I didn't say anything on the earlier story about the papers being auctioned off because no institution was either willing to pay or had the money to pay the family's asking price, but the news that Martin Luther King, Jr's papers were going up for auction bothered me way down in my bones out to the pit of my soul. The idea that this national treasure may have ended up in the hands of a private collector hidden from public view disturbed me. Today, I've heard good news.

Morehouse College to inherit collection of Martin Luther King Jr.'s handwritten documents, books

By ERRIN HAINES, Associated Press WriterSat Jun 24, 4:34 AM ET

A collection of Martin Luther King Jr.'s papers, manuscripts and books that was set for auction next week will instead be given to his alma mater, officials said.

A group of Atlanta businesses, individuals and philanthropic leaders bought the lot of more than 10,000 items from the King family for an undisclosed amount, Morehouse College President Walter Massey said Friday.

The civil rights leader's handwritten documents and books were expected to sell for $15 million to $30 million at Sotheby's auction house in New York on June 30. Massey said the Atlanta coalition offered more than that. (Read the full story here: CBS News)